By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan
For the first time in more than half a century, the presidents of the United States and Cuba have had a formal meeting. This historic moment occurs with some sadness, however: Eduardo Galeano, the great Uruguayan writer who did so much to explain the deeply unequal relations between Latin America and the U.S. and Europe, died as the summit ended.

Tensions are high between the United States and Venezuela as President Obama heads to Panama for the Summit of the Americas. Read an excerpt from the new book by Latin American history professor Miguel Tinker Salas.

By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan — A jury in Boston has returned a guilty verdict on all 30 counts against the Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Now the jury must deliberate on the punishment, which could be either life in prison or death. Capital punishment is outlawed in Massachusetts, but Tsarnaev was tried in federal court, where the death penalty is allowed. The case provides a new reason to take a hard look at capital punishment, and why this irreversible, highly problematic practice should be banned.

Six months after 43 students disappeared in Mexico, a father of one of the students joins us in studio to explain why he believes his son is still alive. We’re also joined by the cousin of another missing student.

After an international outcry authorities have allowed family members of imprisoned journalist and former Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal to visit him for the first time since he blacked out from diabetic shock in prison and woke up in an outside hospital.

By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan
Indiana certainly doesn’t want to be remembered for being a bastion of hatred. So why did Indiana Gov. Mike Pence legalize a new wave of intolerance by signing into law Indiana’s controversial “Religious Freedom Restoration Act” (RFRA)?

More than 100 former students of the for-profit Corinthian Colleges system have joined what they say is the nation’s first student debt strike. The students have refused to pay back loans they took out to attend Corinthian, which has been sued by the federal government for its predatory lending.

Mumia Abu-Jamal’s longtime friend Johanna Fernández learned he had been hospitalized when she went to visit him Monday after he sounded sick. "Upon arrival I was told I could not see him," Fernández told Democracy Now! "We were told he was in diabetic shock and taken to the hospital."

When questioned by Amy Goodman, former CIA Director Peter Goss said the bipartisan Senate Committee Report on the CIA’s Use of Torture was "not the full truth" and criticized Sen. John McCain for defending it.

At an event assessing the George W. Bush presidency, Amy Goodman asked if senior administration officials should be tried for war crimes. Former National Intelligence Director John Negroponte responded afterwards, "Boy, I need a stiff drink after that one."

A stunning indictment has been handed down in Cincinnati, focusing attention again on police killings of people of color. This is a start for accountability and justice. Cleveland should pay attention. As the thousand people gathered there last weekend said clearly, “Black Lives Matter.”

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